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TOKYO: Japanese Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya held a telephone talk with his ����ֱ��n counterpart Prince Faisal bin Farhan on Tuesday and agreed that a peaceful resolution of the Iran nuclear issue should be achieved through dialogue, Japan’s Foreign Ministry reported.

Iwaya noted the importance of the Gulf countries’ calls for restraint and dialogue by both parties during the exchange of attacks between Israel and Iran in June. He also stated that Japan would continue its diplomatic efforts toward a peaceful resolution of the Iranian nuclear issue through dialogue. 

Prince Faisal said both countries agree on seeking a peaceful solution to the Iranian nuclear issue through dialogue. He also welcomed Japan’s proactive role in stabilizing the region and expressed his desire to continue close cooperation.

On other matters, Iwaya emphasized the need to address the severe humanitarian situation in Gaza, as well as reiterating Japan’s support for a two-state solution to resolve the Palestinian issue. Prince Faisal expressed his appreciation for Japan’s support for Gaza and its consistent support for the two-state solution.

Iwaya was speaking from Kuwait, where he attended the Japan-GCC Foreign Ministers’ Meeting and other events. The two ministers held a candid exchange of views on recent regional developments, including Iran, Gaza and Syria. Prince Faisal was unable to attend the GCC-Japan meeting due to other obligations.

On Syria, Iwaya said Japan appreciated the Syrian government’s move toward a peaceful transition and stressed the importance of respecting Syria’s independence and sovereignty. Prince Faisal emphasized the importance of encouraging the Syrian government’s efforts toward political resolution and national reconciliation through dialogue.

Japan’s foreign minister expressed his pleasure at the high-level exchanges between the two countries on the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations this year and stated his intention to continue close ties. 

In response, Prince Faisal said that the two ministers had had meaningful exchanges of views during their two meetings earlier this year on bilateral relations and regional affairs and expressed his satisfaction with the ongoing close communication between them.

They agreed to continue communicating to further strengthen bilateral relations and enhance cooperation in the international arena.

RIYADH: Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and France’s President Emmanuel Macron held discussions on Tuesday on the dire situation in Palestine.

The Saudi Press Agency reported that the crown prince, who received a call from Macron, reiterated the Kingdom’s position for an immediate end to Israel’s war on Gaza and the Occupied Territories.

The crown prince also condemned any measures aimed at undermining a two-state solution to the situation, the SPA reported.

����ֱ�� and France have led an initiative to recognize a Palestinian state. In July, Macron announced France would formally recognize Palestine during the UN General Assembly later this month, becoming the first G7 country to make the commitment.

The move was welcomed by ����ֱ�� and other Gulf states.

����ֱ��’s Foreign Ministry said the Kingdom “commends this historic decision, which reaffirms the international community’s consensus on the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination and to establish their independent state.”

Last month, ����ֱ�� and France co-chaired a key conference to encourage major world powers to accept that Palestinian statehood is now needed to ensure long-term peace in the Middle East.

Australia, Belgium, Canada, Malta, Portugal and the UK have all promised to recognize Palestine this month.

Israel has threatened to take over Gaza City after nearly two years of war on the occupied territory, and also annex the West Bank if Western nations follow through with promises of recognizing a Palestinian state.

“No offensive, annexation attempt, or forced displacement of populations will derail the momentum,” Macron wrote on X, after his call with the crown prince.

Israel has killed over 62,000 people, mostly civilians, in Gaza and has been starving the population as a weapon of war, according to health officials and rights groups.

Experts have described Israel’s actions as genocide. Tel Aviv currently faces charges of genocide at the International Court of Justice.

In addition, the International Criminal Court has issued arrest warrants for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, alleging war crimes that include deliberate starvation.

This week, the 500-member International Association of Genocide Scholars, stated that Israel’s action amount to genocide.

Eighty-six percent of the scholars voted for the resolution declaring: “Israel’s policies and actions in Gaza meet the legal definition of genocide in Article II of the United Nations Convention for the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (1948).”

The latest Israeli war on the Palestinians began in October 2023 after Hamas raided Israeli settlements resulting in the death of 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and the capture of around 250.

Israel’s government has vowed to eradicate the group and free their citizens.

US President Donald Trump held a meeting at the White House last week to discuss the situation.

The meeting was attended by Trump’s Mideast envoy Steve Witkoff, Jared Kushner, the president’s son-in-law and former adviser, former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, and a top Israeli official, according to US media.

A 38-page prospectus circulating within the Trump administration envisions the relocation of all of Gaza’s 2 million people. The US wants to take over the enclave for 10 years while it is transformed into a tourist resort and tech hub, the Washington Post reported on Sunday.

Trump announced in February that he wants the Palestinian territory to be turned into what he called the “Riviera of the Middle East.”